Cast-metal yoke for railway draft mechanism.



G. T. JOHNSON.

CAST METAL YOKE' FOR RAILWAY DRAFT MECHANISM APPLICATION flLED mm. 10. I916.-

L' fiw wg; mmm NOV. 2?, 1917.

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EAST METAL YOKE FOR RAILWAY DRAFT MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10, i916.

Pamnted N0 27, 191? 2 SHEETS -SHE 2.

JWUM WO'ZL on TsTATS TENT FFILGE.

GEORGE TFQHNSON, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE BUCKEYE STEEL CASTINGS COMPANY, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO.

CAST-METAL YOKE FO R,B,AILWAY DRAFT MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 2?, Mill 3.

Application filed March 10, 1916. Serial No. 83,352.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE T. JOHNSON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cast-Metal Yokes for Railway Draft Mechanism; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in cast metal yokes for railway draft mechanism and is designed as an improvement on the construction disclosed in Patent No. 1,153,793 granted to me September 14th, 1915, the object of the present invention being to secure maximum strength and extended bearing faces for the followers with a minimum weight of metal, and it consists in the details of construction as will be more fully explained and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in vertical longitudinal section of my improved yoke; Fig. 2 is a view partly in plan and partly in horizontal longitudinal section of the same; Fig. 3 is a view in section on the line AB of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a section on the line CD of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a view ofa modification and Fig. 6 a View in section on the line 66 of Fig. 5.

The yoke is a casting preferably of steel, and consists of parallel top and bottom members 5 and 6 provided intermediate the ends with a thimble or abutment for the engagement with the rear follower of the front spring and the front follower of the rear spring of a tandem spring draft gear. The front end of the yoke is in the form of a hood to receive the butt end of a stand ard coupling, the side members of the hood being provided with oblong slots 7 to receive a flat or oval key which passes through the butt end of the latter to the yoke.

The rear end of the yoke is curved as shown, and is provided with an abutment 8 for the rear follower of the rear spring, the said rear abutment being cast integral with the rear curved end of the yoke. EX- tending rearwardly from bearing surface 8 is web 13 connecting the said surface and coupling for locking the transmit and distribute the the rear curved extension of side members 5 and 6. This web also connects the transverse ribs 1%]: and 15, which connect and help loads applied to surface 8 to the entire rear end construction. To provide further for the distribution of loads, ribs l l and 15 are connected respectively to themembers 5 and 6 by a plurality of parallel webs 16 and 17. By this construction recesses 18 are formed between the ribs 1% and 15 and the members 5 and 6 which lightens the construction without detracting from its strength.

The thimble or abutment 8 whichas before stated is located intermediate the ends of the yoke, consists of a four sided box like structure open at its sides and having a vertical, longitudinal centrally disposed web 10. The front and rear members 8 and 9 of this abutment constitute the bearing surfaces for the rear follower of the front spring and front follower of the rear spring respectively while the top and bottom members 11 and 11 serve to connect the memhere 8 and 9. These four members are connected by the integral centrally disposed web 10, and the abutment as a whole is connected to the side members 5 and 6, by the parallel webs 19-19 and 20-20, located at the outside edges of the members 11--1l thus forming a rectangular opening 12 between members 11 and 5, and also between members 11 and 6, all of said members and Webs being integral. Instead of connecting the skeleton abutment to the side members by the two connecting webs as above explained three web's may be employed as in Figs. 5 and 6. The cored openings 12 extend throughout the abutment from the front to the rear thereof for the purpose simply of decreasing the weight which they do without sacrificing the strength of the abutment. This abutment is the full width of the yoke and is sufficiently thick to with stand all the strains to which the yoke may be subjected both in pulling and butting. It is cast integral with the upper and lower members 5 and 6, and the front and rear faces thereof are flat and parallel so as to afford extended bearing for the followers. By making the abutment in the form of a hollow square with a central integral web 10, I provide a structure of minimum weight of ample size to properly support the followers and of strength sufficient to sustain till any bulling or pulling stresses up to the capacity of theyoke.

In the construction shown in 5 I haveprovided an abutment similar to the one described adjacent the front end of the yoke. This abutment is engaged by the front follower and also may be engaged by the rear end of the shank of the coupling and acts as a filler between the rear end of the shank and the front follower.

It is evident that many slight changes might be resorted to in the relative arrangement of parts shown and described without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. .Hence I would have. it understood that I do not wish to confine myself to the exact construction and arrangement of parts shown anddescribed, but

Having fully described my invention what I claim as new. and desire to secure by Letters-Patent, is:-

1. In a draft yoke the combination with copies of this patent 5mg be obtained for five centl each, by addressing the top and bottom members and a four sided box like abutment integral with said members, the said abutment being open at its sides and provided with a centrally located integral web extending lengthwise the yoke, and integral webs connecting the abutment at the side edges of the latter, with the top and bottom members of the yoke.

2. In a draft yoke, the combination of top and bottom members and a four sided box like abutment intermediate said members the top and bottom members of the box each having a plurality of parallel openings through the same and extending in the direction of the length of the yoke.

In testimony whereof, I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE T. JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

GEO. M. MURPHY, C. A. KELLEY.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G." 

